Rovers blast Saints off the park in first final

The dream of a senior football three-peat is still well and truly alive after defending champions Wangaratta Rovers dealt a hammering blow to Myrtleford Saints in the first match of the 2026 Ovens and Murray finals series. Played on the glorious turf of Norm Minns Oval on Saturday, the Rovers surged after a relatively even opening term, kicking 13 of the last 14 majors of the game in the 14.14 (98) to 3.7 (25) drubbing. The match certainly felt like a final from the first siren, with immense pressure at the contest from both teams. Myrtleford held a slight four-point lead, but the Rovers started to pile on the pressure after quarter time. The Rovers were able to deny the Saints any legitimately tantalising looks inside forward 50, cutting off the attack and rebounding on the outside with leg speed and precision kicking to pile on five goals straight to head into the long break with a 25-point lead. With their confidence soaring, and their defensive structure paying dividends, the Rovers continued to control the match. The third term saw the Rovers generate 11 scoring shots to Myrtleford’s two, outclassing the tricolours across the park – the damage could’ve been even more if the Rovers had kicked true with eight minor scores recorded in the third quarter. With the match all but tied up, neither team put the cue in the rack, but there was little the Saints could do to make up the deficit. Goals to Rovers Harry McMonigle, Lockey McCartney, Sam Murray, Dylan Wilson and Sam Cattapan were the cherry on top of a truly remarkable statement win in finals. Rovers football operations manager Mario Antonello said the team’s ability to absorb pressure early was impressive to see. “It was tight early, everyone was fresh and pretty up for it at the beginning of any match, but they brought some really good pressure,” he said. “It was probably similar to the time we played them at our ground the first time around, they were really hard at it to start with, and as the game went on we flexed a bit of muscle, I suppose. “I suppose you get a little used to it, there’s not a hell of a lot between the best teams and the teams who have missed finals – in the competition, you come up against it [pressure] most weeks, even when you’re playing the lower-end teams. “It’s just teams who sit higher on the ladder probably sustain it for a bit longer, and we‘ve just learnt over the years just to ride it and fight fire with fire.” The Rovers defensive structures have been the bane of the Saints in the last few weeks, keeping the tricolours to just 25 scoring shots over the past two matches. “We’ve got a really good back six or even 10, there are guys who aren’t playing like Brodie Paul and Harry Nolan who can go in there and perform just as well as the guys who are in there,” Antonello said. “We’re really lucky our core group knows what their roles are and what their roles are.” Big Will Christie and Dylan Wilson finished with three goals each, with four other multiple goal kickers for the brown and gold. The Rovers will face archrivals Wangaratta Magpies next Saturday in the major semi-final, with the winner through to the grand final. There was plenty of football action across the day, with the Magpies reserves going down 6.1 (37) to Albury’s 14.9 (93), while the Magpies claimed victory in the thirds derby 10.8 (680 to Rovers’ 6.9 (45).

Rovers blast Saints off the park in first final

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